INVESTIGADORES
ADDINO Mariana Del Sol
artículos
Título:
A new non-indigenous Crassostrea species in Southwest Atlantic salt marshes affects mortality of the cordgrass Spartina alterniflora
Autor/es:
LOMOVASKY B.; ALVAREZ, G.; ADDINO M.; DIANA MONTEMAYOR; IRIBARNE O.
Revista:
JOURNAL OF SEA RESEARCH
Editorial:
ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV
Referencias:
Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2014 p. 16 - 22
ISSN:
1385-1101
Resumen:
Biological invasions in marine and coastal systems may produce new
trophic and nontrophic interactions influencing the structure of the
invaded community. In the intertidal salt marshes of Samborombón Bay
(36°19′20″S, 56°46′26″W; mouth of La Plata River; Argentina), there is a
new non-indigenous oyster species, Crassostrea sp., which settles on the dominant smooth cordgrass Spartina alterniflora. Here, we analyzed if the oyster affects S. alterniflora.
Sampling showed that density of live plant was similar across
intertidal levels, but there were higher density of dead plant stems at
low intertidal levels. This pattern coincides with higher density and
larger shell size of Crassostrea sp. at the low intertidal
where oysters are attached to the basal part of the plant stems. An
experiment manipulating oysters attached to S. alterniflora stems and oyster mimics shows that Crassostrea sp. can indeed increase mortality of S. alterniflora. The negative effect of bivalves on plant could be because several oysters settle around the Spartina
stem, and by growing during the year, strangle the plants increasing
their mortality rate. Together, all these evidences strongly suggest
that these non-indigenous oysters can control the lower intertidal level
of plant distribution in this system.